The financial downturn has affected the financial status and life plans of many persons in middle age and older, and they may not have the same opportunities as younger people to recover from the recession"s effects, according to a Government Accountability Office analysis.
The study, focusing on persons 55 and older, found that they "may have insufficient time to rebuild their depleted retirement savings due to sharp declines in financial markets and home equity, and increased medical costs. Further, while older workers are less likely to be unemployed than workers in younger age groups, when older workers lose a job they are less likely to find other employment. These changes have intensified older adults" concerns about having sufficient savings now and adequate income throughout retirement.”
It said the median duration of unemployment for older workers rose sharply from 2007 to 2010, more than tripling for workers 65 and older and increasing to 31 weeks from 11 weeks for workers aged 55 to 64. In addition, the proportion of older part-time workers who indicated they would prefer full-time work nearly doubled during this time. Household income fell by 6 percent for adults 55-64
Furthermore, the recession left older adults with difficult choices regarding retirement savings, since many of the fixed-income investments traditionally favored by those in or near retirement barely kept up with inflation, if that.
The report cited a survey in which nearly a quarter of survey respondents aged 50 and older indicated that they or someone in their family had exhausted or used up all of their savings during 2007-2010, while more than 12 percent stated that they or someone in their family had lost their health insurance. Among those who reported having difficulty making ends meet during 2007-2010, nearly 50 percent reported that they delayed getting medical or dental care, or delayed or ceased taking medication. In addition, more than one-third reported that they had stopped or cut back on saving for retirement.
